Self-propelled wheeled vehicles, such as skates and skateboards are known in the art. In the past, these devices have employed steerable trucks secured to a platform and supporting pairs of wheels for providing rolling motion to the platform to thereby transport a rider supported thereon. Turning the skate or skateboard generally involves the redistribution of the rider's weight to lean the board or skate and thereby cause the trucks to pivot into the turn. The wheeled trucks are generally adjustable to provide stiff or loose turning action, whereby stiffer turning action of the trucks provides greater stability, but less agility in turning. Conversely, when the trucks are adjusted for looser turning action, the board or skate provides greater turning agility, but less stability.
Over time, the skill level of the general population of riders has increased, generating a demand for boards and skates capable of providing more aggressive performance. The desire for greater speed and improved performance in terms of aggressive turning ability has in turn driven the development of conventional skates and skateboards. In particular, both skates and skateboards have been developed with tandem, or in-line wheels, which generally provide greater turning ability and reduced friction drag compared to wheeled trucks. While in-line skates have become increasingly popular, in-line skateboards are not as prevalent in use. This lag in the proliferation of in-line skateboards is due in part to the difficulty experienced in maintaining stability of the skateboard while maneuvering through a turn.
Moreover, the performance of conventional in-line skates may be improved by increasing the turning ability of the individual skates.
There is thus a need for improved tandem-wheeled riding devices which overcome drawbacks of the prior art, such as those described above.